Saturday, 20 July 2013

Transliteration: Allahumma innaka afuwwun tuhibbu al-afwa fa'fu anniAisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said: I asked the Messenger of
Allah: ‘O Messenger of Allah, if I know what night is the night of Qadr,
what should I say during it?’ He said: ‘Say: Oh Allah, You are the Most
Forgiving. You love forgiveness, so forgive me.’ “ (Ibn Majah, and Tirmidhi).

The Night of Power (Laylat’l-Qadr): Step by Step Guide

As Muslims we are blessed with countless blessings from Allāh.
Among them is that He has prescribed the fasting during the month of
Ramadan and has favored us over any other faith group in the past by
multiplying our deeds especially in this blessed month. Another
immeasurable blessing which Allāh has favored us with is the night of power. Worshiping in this night sincerely and expecting the reward from Allāh carries great reward for the servants. In an authentic narration from the Prophet , we read:

“Whosoever worshiped on laylat'l-qadr, with faith and with a sincere intention, all of his previous sins are forgiven.” [i]

This night is special for the Ummah of the Prophet Muḥammad. Worshiping Allāh in it is equivalent to worshiping Him for 1000 months.

I do not wish to delve into the views and opinions of the scholars
regarding the timing and date of this powerful and blessed night. There
are a plethora of articles and books on these topics. The reader may
wish to read the writings of imām Ibn Rajab al Hanbali in his much celebrated book Lataif al Ma'arif in the chapter of Ramadan.

I wish to focus on how we can prepare ourselves to reap the rewards
of this night and hopefully be granted the forgiveness of our Lord.
Below is a step by step guide to achieving success during laylat'l-qadr
inspired by the writings of imām Ibn Rajab and others:

1. Start preparing for it at Fajr. After Fajr ṣalāh, ensure you recite the morning adhkar (remembrance), especially:

لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير
'La ila illahu wahdau la sharika lahu, lahul mulku walahul hamd wahuwa 'ala kulli shayin qadeer'
There is no God but Allāh; He is alone without any partner. To Him belong the dominion and to Him belong all praise and He is over all things able.
Repeat this 100 times.
The Prophet
said whoever recites it 100 times in the morning and evening, 100 good
deeds will be recorded for him and 100 evil deeds will be erased from
his tab, and he will be protected from the Shaytan. An important note
here is that he will be free from the whisperings of the Shaytan to
prepare for the Night of Power.

2. Treat Iftar to a fasting person, either by inviting him to your house, or by buying the food for him and sending it to him. The Prophet
said that whoever gives food to break another person's fast, he will
receive the same reward as the person without his reward being
diminished.

3. When the day breaks, make as much du‘ā’ as possible that Allāh helps you and makes it easy for you to worship Him during this night.

4. If you haven't paid your Zakat money, pay it this night as the rewards will be magnified. If you have, then prepare some sadaqah (charity) to give in the way of Allāh. Remember charity burns our sins as fire burns wood.

5. During the course of the day, try and avoid people as much as possible (except those who need your support).
This way you will not be harmed and will not be in a position to harm
anyone, thus entering the night with a clean heart and mind.

Note: this also applies to the various social networks such as
Facebook, Twitter etc. You do not need to tell the whole world you're
going to the Mosque at Tahajjud!

6. Throughout the daytime make sure you perform the
obligatory duties such as praying on time with the additional Sunnah and
optional prayers. Repeat the phrases of adhān after the muadhin and make the necessary supplications.[ii]

7. When you break your fast, make sure you're mindful that Allāh may not accept your fasting, so you should yearn for and anticipate His mercy and reward. Supplicate with the following:

9. If you have parents, make sure you are dutiful towards them. Break Iftar with them and fulfill all their needs.

10. If you are not in good terms with a family member, try and resolve it before the night starts.

11. If you can, have a bath and perform wuḍūʼ like the Prophet.

12. Put on clean clothes and put nice perfume on before going to the Mosque.

13. When you enter the Mosque perform all the etiquette of the Mosque. Try not to speak to people too much, just focus all your energy to be alone with Allāh.

14. Pray the prayers with khushu (humility) and try to cry. If tears do not come out, try and make them come (I DON'T mean you should cut onions in the Mosques )

15. When you return home, make sure you are still doing the dhikr of Allāh.

16. When you arrive at your house, eat and make du‘ā’, make wuḍūʼ and take some rest (sleep) if you need to. Your sleep will be counted as ibadah.

17. Wake up in due time and pray Tahajjud (many Mosques pray Tahajjud in a Jama'ah), eat and then pray fajr. After fajr, read the Qur'an, make constant du‘ā’ and plead to Allāh to forgive you. Do that and the morning dhikr until sunrise, all the while being mindful of the presence of the angels.

Remember this is the night in which Allāh decrees your rizq (provisions) for the coming year, so implore Allāh; cry your heart out as they say so that He may give you what you desire. Don't think what you're asking for is too much for Allāh,
nothing you ask will decrease His dominion. You want money ask Him, you
want a wife/husband ask Him, you want a job ask Him, you want children
ask Him, you want peace of heart ask Him, anything you desire ask.
Remember that you must focus and concentrate when you pray and make du‘ā’.

18. When you make du‘ā’, remember that there is certain etiquette you have to follow:
a) Praise Allāh first,
b) then send salutations upon the Prophet,
c) then make du‘ā’ for your yourself,
d) then make du‘ā’ for your family and the rest of the Ummah.
Try and follow this order as much as you can.

19. Remember when you supplicate you should have certainty and expect the best from Allāh. Pray with humility and fear in front of Allāh. Acknowledge your mistakes and shortcomings and implore and beseech Him alone to forgive you. Also supplicate to Allāh quietly – there is no need to raise one's voice.

20. And finally, please do not forget to make du‘ā’ for this poor servant who is in need of your prayers.[iv]

Important note for sisters:

Many sisters who are on the monthly menses ask what they can do
during this night. They feel left out from the blessings of this night.
Although she is not allowed to perform the prayers and recite the
Qur'an by touching it. The scholars have stated that she may perform as
much du‘ā’ as possible, remembering and praising Allāh.
They also state that she is allowed to recite the Qur'an from her
memory. And finally if her intention and ardent desire is to worship her
Lord in this night but due to the valid excuse in the Shari'ah she is
not able to perform the normal prayers; she should be certain that Allāh will reward her fully according to her sincerity and intention.Allāh knows best.

[i] Bukhāri and Muslim
[ii] See Hisnul Muslim. Alternatively visit: http://www.makedua.com/
[iii] Please watch a short video clip explaining briefly the meaning of this du‘ā’: http://youtu.be/QU1jDhW64ak
[iv] Please refer to Ibn Rajab's Lataif al Ma'arif for discussion on the virtues and some actions of this night.

Friday, 5 July 2013

Dealing with our own nafs or soul isn't an easy job. We need to put a huge effort and a lot of struggles in order to defeat our own nafs. A strong WWE wrestler maybe can defeat 10 opponents at the same time. But when he needs to 'wrestle' with himself, there is no 100% guaranty that he would success.

That is why concerning spiritual struggle or mujahadah, the Prophet , said:

al-mujahid man jahada nafsahu fi ta'ati'Llah – 'The warrior is the one who strives against his lower soul in obedience to God.'

Ramadhan is just a perfect time as fasting is one of the effective ways to tame our nafs. It is a perfect 'school' to educate ourselves. And hopefully, after Ramadhan School ends, we will graduate as a true warrior. InshaAllah..
___________________________________________________________________

Many passages in the Qurʾān extol the significance of the soul or nafs. In one celebrated passage, it says:

By the soul and Him that formed it, then
inspired it with its wickedness and God-fearingness. He is truly
successful who purifies it, and he is indeed ruined who corrupts
it. [Surah Ash-Shams, 7-10]

The Qur'ān also offers this glad-tiding:

But those who feared the standing before their Lord and curbed their soul's desires, the Garden is their abode. [Surah An-Nazi'aat, 40-41]

The idea of curbing the soul's passions and of seeking to purify it
is reiterated in the following hadith: 'There are three acts that,
whoever does them will experience the sweetness of faith: one who
worships God alone, for there is no true god but Him; one who pays his
yearly zakat on his wealth with an agreeable soul – not giving a
weak, decrepit nor diseased animal, but giving from his middle wealth,
for God does not ask for the best of your wealth and nor orders to give
the worst of it; and one who purifies his soul.' A man inquired: What is
purification of the soul (tazkiyat al-nafs)? He replied: 'To know that God is with him wherever he may be.'1
The Qurʾān describes the human soul (nafs) as possessing three potentials or degrees which are present within it simultaneously.2

The first and the lowest degree is al-nafs al-ammarah bi'l-su' – “the soul that constantly incites to evil”. The Qurʾān says:

…The soul does indeed incite to evil… [Surah Yusuf, 53]

This untamed, unweaned soul is the abode of a multitude of incessant
cravings and passions: be it for wealth, fame, power, physical
gratification, exploiting others – that is, anything which deflects one
away from God and to the lower possibilities of the human condition.
Al-Jurjani (d.816H/1413CE) defined the nafs al-ammarah as: 'It
is that which inclines to the bodily nature, ordering [the pursuit of]
physical pleasures and carnal appetites, pulling the heart to
debasement. It is the abode of evil, giving birth to all reprehensible
traits.'3 So, this nafs, equivalent to the English word “ego”,
refers to the reprehensible aspects of our actions and character –
actions in respect to our sins of omission or commission; character in
terms of pride, envy, vanity, greed, impatience, ostentation, and the
like.
As the believer strives to purge his soul of blameworthy traits (radha'il) and labours to replace them by their praiseworthy opposites (fada'il), the nafs al-ammarah is gradually weaned away from heedlessness and disobedience to God, and thus begins to give way to al-nafs al-lawwamah – “the reproachful soul.” The Qurʾān declares:

No! I swear by the reproachful soul. [Surah Al-Qiyamah, 2]

This soul is man's active conscience that is afflicted with regret,
remorse and self-reproach whenever the Divine Will is disobeyed and
elements of the lower, evil-inciting soul resurface. Al-Jurjani writes
of the nafs al-lawwamah: 'It is that which is illumined with
the light of the heart, according to the measure of how much it has
become awakened from habitual heedlessness. As soon as it commits a sin
due to its natural oppressive disposition, it takes to blaming itself
and repenting from it.'4
After much inward striving and discipline, the nafs al-lawwamah is further purified of any opposition to God's will or shari'ah, and is ever receptive to heavenly outpourings. Here the nafs al-mutma'innah –
“the soul at peace” or “the tranquil soul” then begins to predominate.
It is this soul that is most worthy of divine assistance and acceptance.
It is about this that the Qurʾān says:

Having established His obedience and internalized it, it is intimate with God, at peace with God's decree (rida bi'l-qada'), tasting the sweetness of faith. Al-Jurjani defines the nafs al-mutma'innah in
the following manner: 'It is that whose illumination is completed by
the heart's light, such that is has been purged of its blameworthy
traits and adorned with praiseworthy ones.'5
In all of this, four factors are crucial and have a significant
bearing in purification of the soul: (i) one's inborn nature; (ii) his
upbringing; (iii) spiritual striving (mujahadah) and self-discipline (riyadah) in adulthood; and, of course, (iv) God's tawfiq or enabling grace.

Concerning spiritual struggle or mujahadah, the Prophet , said: al-mujahid man jahada nafsahu fi ta'ati'Llah – 'The warrior is the one who strives against his lower soul in obedience to God.'6

Wednesday, 3 July 2013

It's just a few days before we meet Ramadhan. Let's all by start making some preparations before she arrives.. purify our heart before we meet her.

WASH OUR HEART!

How?

Let's watch this beautiful short reminder for me and you by Shaikh Muhammad Hussein Yaqub

p/s: Someone asked me about the the links for Mufti Menks' lectures (Ramadhan Lecture Series #1). For your information, those links had been changed. And I am really
sorry since there is nothing I can do.. But don't worry, there are lots
of Mufti Menks' lectures on Youtube. Just type his name, and you'll get
hundreds feeds of his videos.